Mail of the week

The cover story provides immense potential for sociological research ("The Caste Curse", May 24). Parliament rightly ended its recent session with the home minister remarking that the caste phenomenon is a reality with high divisive factors. Caste has been an instrumental aspect of state policy from time immemorial. At this juncture, not just the Government but research scholars and intellectuals should express their concerns over the caste-based census.-- Prof. Ramesh Sinha, Delhi

The lead article has rightly dubbed India as a caste country as the curse of caste is fully upon us and nothing, including the Census 2011, remains untouched by it. For the Indian politician who plays the caste card at every political turn, it is a gift from heaven. For the lower castes, it is a magic wand to extract maximum concessions from the state. And as long as caste calls the shots, this country will never progress.-- Vijayalakshmi A., via www.indiatoday.in

Just when we thought we had rid ourselves of this horrendous system of dividing people on the basis of their caste, it seems to be coming back to haunt us. The Government is being driven by the 'Y' factor or the Yadav force. Whether it was in the past or now, the motive is the same-divide people in order to benefit a chosen few. The inclusion of caste in the census is an extremely regressive step.-- S.N. Sharma, Gurgaon

Your cover story elucidates the sinister motive of a few politicians, who want to cash in on the caste issue to woo their voters. No one believes Sushma Swaraj when she justifies the caste count to further academic interests. In comparison to the Census 1931, this time the ratio of higher caste is bound to be less than the reserve category, because of smaller family norms prevalent in the group. However, are they going to get penalised for that? Does it mean that the outcome of Census is going to give a signal, which is anti-family planning?-- Manjula Pal, Delhi

Tighten the noose ("26/11: The Inside Story", May 17)

I'm appalled at the views of some people who feel death sentence should not have been given to Ajmal Kasab on the grounds that by taking away a person's life we are committing the same crime that the accused did ("26/11: The Inside Story", May 17). There cannot be a parallel between the two acts. We the tax payers are spending Rs 2 lakh a day to keep alive a person who has committed a heinous crime. Over a lifetime we will end up spending more than a hundred crore. While innocent farmers are committing suicide because they cannot afford even one square meal a day, we have no qualms in spending our hard-earned money for keeping Kasab alive. If we feel too strongly about not taking lives then we can deport him to Pakistan, swapping him with an Indian who is awaiting the gallows there.-- Mohan Narayanan, via www.indiatoday.in

Changing ballgame ("Short Circuit", May 24)

India's performance in the World Twenty20 was totally dismal and disgraceful ("Short Circuit", May 24). When an entire bunch of players fail in a tournament, something is drastically wrong also with the selectors who chose a team that could not deliver goods. It's a grave injustice to select unfit players when there is no dearth of talent in the country. No player should be selected on the basis of his past laurels. Likewise, the so-called tired players should take rest to make way for the newcomers. The game is more important than the players.-- Prem K. Menon, Mumbai

Cost of callousness ("Playing with Lives", May 24)

It is shocking how a defective bulletproof jacket could be given an approval for use ("Playing with Lives", May 24). Similarly, fake drugs, including life-saving ones, are illegally manufactured and marketed in connivance with a predatory bureaucracy. The test of Manmohan Singh's leadership will lie not so much in his survival strategies as in his actions to curb official graft.-- Kangayam R. Narasimhan, Chennai

Reliance on family ("Government is the Big Brother", May 24)

The Supreme Court judgement is a balanced one with far-reaching implications that two individual litigant-parties have no right over a commodity controlled by the Government ("Government is the Big Brother", May 24). The directions for re-negotiation gave a healing touch to the fighting parties for settlements keeping in view the fact that the Government-controlled gas cannot be made a subject of dispute between private parties.-- Subhash Chandra Agrawal, Delhi

The clash of the Ambani brothers is a lesson for family businesses. Such a conflict is inevitable as an individual feels the need to stand on his feet. The worst competition comes from siblings if both are in the same business.-- Mahesh Kumar, via www.indiatoday.in

Do You Like This Story? Awesome! Now share the story Too bad. Tell us what you didn't like in the comments